The ‘least biblical film about Noah ever made’ faces a deluge of criticism from religious groups

Nick Clark

Nick Clark is the arts correspondent of The Independent. He joined the newspaper in June 2007, initially reporting on the stock markets. He has covered beats including the City, and technology, media and telecoms and made the switch to arts in December 2011. He has also contributed articles to the sports section.

Noah, the $125m blockbuster starring Russell Crowe described by its director as the “least biblical biblical film ever made”, is having to navigate choppy waters as religious groups raise opposition to the adaptation while some countries have already banned it.

The epic retelling of the biblical flood story was a gruelling
shoot, with filming having to be postponed when the set was
threatened by Hurricane Sandy. Director Darren Aronofsky also had
to battle with studio heads over the final cut.

Now it faces further issues as Qatar, Bahrain and the United
Arab Emirates have banned the film with Egypt, Jordan and Kuwait
expected to follow suit. The Muslim countries are furious over the
movie’s portrayal of a prophet, saying it “contradicts the
teachings of Islam”. The Egyptian Sunni Muslim institute Al-Azhar
said it prohibited the screening of movies showing such figures and
said the film would antagonise the “feelings of the faithful”.

While studio Paramount Pictures might have hoped for support
from Christians in America ahead of the film’s release, it appears
to have been mistaken. A series of religious conservative groups
criticised the portrayal for not following the Bible story closely
enough, with some complaining that the character of Noah was “too
dark” after seeing early screenings.

The complaints prompted the studio to put a disclaimer on its
marketing materials saying the film was “inspired by the story of
Noah. While artistic license has been taken, we believe that this
film is true to the essence, values, and integrity of a story that
is the cornerstone of faith for millions of people worldwide”.

Russell Crowe as Noah: the first environmentalist, according to the film’s director (Allstar/Paramount)There have also been reports of clashes between the director
and the studio, which feared the film would inflame conservative
Christians. Paramount, which had final cut approval, made a series
of re-edits of the finished film to make sure it would appeal to
religious viewers.

While Aronofsky’s version came in at two hours long, the studio
later tested an 86-minute alternative version featuring a montage
of religious figures at the beginning and a Christian rock song at
the end. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this version did not test well and
the studio later returned to Aronofsky’s vision. “They tried what
they wanted to try and eventually they came back,” he told the Hollywood Reporter. “I was upset of course.”

The director added: “
Noah is the least biblical biblical film ever made. I don’t
give a f*** about the test scores.”

Aronofsky, whose films include Black Swan and The Wrestler, has wanted to make the film for 15 years,
and said he would use it to address environmentalist themes,
claiming that Noah was “the first environmentalist”.

The director said the film was made for “believers and
non-believers”, telling Variety: “I’m more concerned about getting non-believers
into the theatre or people who are less religious.” The film
co-stars Jennifer Connelly and some British talent, including Sir
Anthony Hopkins, Ray Winstone and Emma Watson.

It opens in the UK on 4 April but had its world premiere in
Mexico City this week. Aronofsky told the audience: “Anything you’r
e expecting, you’re f***ing wrong.” The studio has placed a strict
embargo on the reviews until the US release later this month.

It is hardly the first religious film to incite criticism. The Last Temptation of Christ, directed by Martin
Scorsese, faced a wave of protests and boycotts in the US and was
banned in countries including Mexico and Turkey when it was
released in 1988. Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ (2004) was also controversial
due to its graphic portrayal of torture and crucifixion, but it
went on to become a global box office hit, taking $612m.

This year is to see a slew of religious films open in the US
including Son of God, Heaven is for Real, starring Greg Kinnear, and
Exodus, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Christian
Bale as Moses.

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